Expect a gender-focused budget in 2018: Chagger

For the second year in a row, the federal budget will have gender equality weaved throughout its dense pages — something that makes Bardish Chagger, Government House Leader and Minister of Small Business and Tourism, pleased.

“In 2017, it was the first time a budget was released that had the gender-based analysis lens applied to it and yes, I think that will be the norm going forward,” said Chagger.

She noted that a female-focused budget is key to the growth of the economy and by failing to do so, we miss out on the potential of nearly half of Canada’s workforce.

“Our best natural renewable resource in our country is our people, and something that we are doing as a government is focusing on skills development to ensure that our people have the skills for the economy of tomorrow,” she said.

Chagger made the comments at a Bank of Montreal (BMO) event this morning, marking the release of their sponsored report, Everywhere, Every Day Innovating: Women Entrepreneurs and Innovation.

The conversation focused on expanding the definition of innovation, beyond tech-related efforts. This means moving from STEM to STEAM, as the addition of arts sparks more collaboration between all industries, she said.

“The engineer, needs some business experience. The successful business person, needs to know the arts, whether that’s marketing, whether that’s communications,” said Chagger. “Rather than reinventing the wheel, women tend to look at what else is out there, what is available, how do we work together so that we can all succeed, because a high tide lifts all boats.”

Finance Minister Bill Morneau echoed a similar sentiment when he announced the February 27 budget release date in Question Period yesterday and later in a press release.

“Our plan is working. But there is work to do. We are building on a solid plan by making further investments in our people and our communities and by making sure that everyone, no matter their gender, will have an equal opportunity to succeed,” said Morneau.

Morneau and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have made hints of the budget theme in recent weeks, both on Twitter and on the public stage at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

There, Trudeau called on the international community to actively start prioritizing gender equality in their governments.

“I’d like to focus tonight on a fundamental shift that every single leader in this room can act on immediately. I’m talking about hiring, promoting and retaining more women,” said Trudeau.

“And not just because it’s the right thing to do, or the the nice thing to do, but because it’s the smart thing to do.”

The theme will carry through to June as Canada prepares to host the G7 summit in Quebec. One of the key priorities of the meeting will be “advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment.”

It all makes sense for a prime minister who’s made it his mission to be known as a proud feminist.

Chagger said the PM’s decision to do so isn’t simply a PR stunt, it’s a strategic move to show Canadians that if the leader of the country believes in gender equality, they should too.

“He said he’s going to keep saying it until there’s no reaction because it should be the norm. We should want all of the people in our country to succeed, and I think that’s what’s so exciting about him,” said Chagger.

Chagger spoke to an audience of mostly female business leaders at the National Arts Centre, where the findings of the report, co-funded by BMO, the federal government, Carleton University and the Beacon Agency, were delivered.

In it, is a convincing proposal that the federal government use their multi-billion-dollar procurement programs to support small and medium enterprises and minority-owned businesses, including requiring supplier diversity policies for federal crown corporations and agencies.

More from iPolitics

3 comments on “Expect a gender-focused budget in 2018: Chagger”

How about focusing on a budget that benefits all Canadians and stop with the virtue signaling. Off course I believe gender issues deserve focus but lets stop assuming everything affects males and females differently. Good government policies benefit all Canadians and bad ones hurt all. Now when it comes to more women on corporate boardrooms that is a whole different story and I am not sure what the answer is. Definitely would be good to have more but I am always a skeptic of affirmative action and quotas. Perhaps it would be interesting to showcase some firms that have achieved close to gender parity and maybe adopt similar strategies to them without quotas or affirmative action.

Why are we hosting an event that by it’s very name we do not belong to. Canada is not in the top seven countries by GDP in fact we are 10 or 11 depending. This is another expensive photo op that accomplishes nothing especially with Trump there.